December 9,2013

PreSonus was proud to be a part of the 2013 ASCAP Songwriters Retreat, held September 25th to October 4th at the 14th-century Château Marouatte in the Dordogne region of France—an inspiring place for the lyrically inclined.

And that’s the point. ASCAP has designed this retreat to bring out the best in talented writers. This year’s 30+ participants were divided into different groups, every day, to write and record, keeping collaborative spirits fresh and healthy. At the end of the session, attendees return home with renewed artistic vigor, their hearts and hard drives full of song.

In fact, a dozen of the songs written at the camp this year are already on hold for major label artists, including The Temper Trap, Kelly Clarkson, Melanie Fiona, Nylo, Jessie Malakouti, and Jon Bellion.

PreSonus was happy to provide a metric heap of equipment to foster the creative process, including:

Photos from the event follow, as well as a kind thank-you video from the songwriters themselves. You’re welcome, folks, and we hope you wrote enough hits to fill a 14th-century dining hall. Read more about it here.

May 6,2013

“Recently, I bought a PreSonus BlueTube DP V2 to use as a warmer for my DJ equipment kit. Last night I performed at a medium-sized art gallery with the new equipment for the first time, and the effects were both profound and fantastic. The BlueTube added a whole new dimension to my overall sound, creating stronger, richer bass, and it filled the space with a deeper, more intimate audio personality than I have ever been able to produce without it. It’s all about the feeling of the moment for me as a DJ, and that means more than just playing music, but creating a mood, and last night I was able to achieve a whole new type of intensity and energy. The PreSonus BlueTube DP V2 is now the most important and essential piece of gear in my signal path, and will be a permanent, much-appreciated addition to my gear kit. I absolutely recommend that anybody playing digital-based music get one of these right away, the effects are astounding!”

November 1,2012

[This just in from Scott Detweiler, New Orleans composer, lyricist, and PreSonus advocate. He had some nice things to say about our hardware, software, and foodware via e-mail, which makes my blogwriting REALLY easy.]

Scott Detweiler

Hi guys, hope you are doing well.

I wanted to give you and update on Nimbit and on my new BlueTube DP V2!

Last year I ended my relationship with my old online distribution account for several reasons, so I was really happy when I received your email regarding the Nimbit accounts for PreSonus Artists… but I wasn’t sure what to expect.

So far, we have uploaded two of my albums to Nimbit, and all of the descriptive info. Nimbit is great! It’s very user-friendly and offers many more options than other online distribution platforms. It’s a great product! We will go live when we get three more CDs up. The uploading of my entire catalog will take some time (13 already-released albums and about another dozen or so unreleased!) but hopefully it will all be up within the next few months. I will also provide more feedback to you after we go live. Thanks to PreSonus and Nimbit!

>As for the BlueTube DP V2, I use it for live shows: one channel for guitar, and the other for vocals. I like it better than my old preamp for several reasons.

I notice an increased fullness of the voicing and more clarity in the higher range of my guitar.

The power cord is much more rugged and hearty, and is not as delicate as the electrical cord that came with the previous model. There were a couple of times when the power cord got kicked out. As said, I use it for live gigs—not to say that the old cord was a dealbreaker, but for live gigs the new one is really durable—it’s inevitable that sometimes the end that plugs into the power strip accidentally gets stepped on and pulled, but this cord can take it.

Believe it or not, I liked the owner’s manual! It is way more user-friendly! I have never been a very technical guy. Not to say that the old manual was Greek to me, or anything like that… but the new manual is laid out really well and the organization of the information works better for me.)

Also, the unit seems to be just a little bit bigger. That’s good because it sits in myeffect rack better!

Last but not least, the Jambalaya recipe. I cooked some up and it’s great!

Again, thank you and thank PreSonus. Please give my regards to Mark Williams. I look forward to seeing y’all at NAMM. I will be sure to pass by and say hello!

June 22,2012

Last autumn, PreSonus released V2 updates of our popular TubePre and BlueTube DP microphone/instrument preamps. With preamps so beloved, our intention wasn’t to completely re-create either of these products, but rather to refresh them and bring them more in-line with our current offerings.

PreSonus BlueTube V2

By now, most of our loyal customers are very familiar with our popular XMAX preamp design. This circuit is employed on nearly every current interface product and, of course, our award-winning StudioLive-series of digital mixers. A little known fact is that both the TubePre and BlueTube DP preamps use early versions of what would eventually become the XMAX microphone preamp. Over time, this circuit has been tweaked and perfected into the XMAX mic pre our customers know and love. The biggest change to both V2 models was to update their preamp circuits to the current XMAX design.

Because of the updated preamp design, both V2 models feature new extended Gain Ranges: -15dB to 85dB (Mic) / -30dB to 50dB (Inst) as compared to 0dB to 60dB on the older models. Another consequence of changing to the current XMAX preamp design is increased headroom.

PreSonus TubePre V2

The original TubePre featured a -20dB pad; however the XMAX design we use today offers so much headroom that attenuation pads are simply not necessary. With the TubePre V2, the pad was removed and an input select switch was added. This allows the user to leave both their microphone and instrument connected at the same time, making it an even more convenient tool for home recording enthusiast and professionals alike.

It should be mentioned that the version of the circuit in the BlueTube DP is closer to the current XMAX design in this regard. This is why the BlueTube DP had no attenuation pad to remove.

Other changes in the V2 models are as follows:

Both V2 Models also feature a new VU Meter design that is more brightly lit than either V1 model.

Both V2 models feature a new industrial design that adheres more closely to our current products.

Both V2 models were given a new lower profile power supply to free up valuable surge protector real estate.

The orientation of the BlueTube DP’s Tube Drive and Gain controls was changed to match the Tube Pre (Tube Drive on the left, Gain on the right) for consistency and ease of use for those customers who purchase both products.

We hope you all enjoy employing these products as much as we enjoyed engineering them! Please feel welcome and encouraged to share your recordings featuring these products on our Facebook wall.